1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to condoms and more particularly to a condom an method for providing a natural feeling for the male partner during intercourse while using a condom.
More particularly, the present invention relates to the field of condom retaining apparatus.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Many people use condoms during sexual intercourse. One problem of using condoms encountered by some people is that sometimes a condom does not remain in its fully unrolled condition on the penis of a man while it is in use, and subsequently becomes loose. This situation often jeopardizes the purpose of using the condom. Therefore it is desirable to have a retaining apparatus to keep the condom in its fully unrolled condition while in use.
Therefore there is an existing need to have a condom retaining apparatus which securely keeps the condom in its unrolled position while being used, yet is not comfortable for the user. This need is particularly urgent in today's society, where a rapidly growing number of people are using the condoms for various purposes, including preventing pregnancy and the transmittal of sexually communicable diseases, such as AIDS.
While few women notice enough difference when a condom is used to avoid using one, men often avoid using condoms because they interfere with the pleasure associated with intercourse. Men complain that there is little feeling and consequently sometimes avoid using a condom even when failing to do so could have undesirable consequences or is dangerous. To overcome this problem condoms have been proposed which are either thinner or smaller in size in an attempt to help reduce the amount of interference with the natural feeling men are used to during intercourse without the use of a condom, but the objections persist.
Numerous condom devices have been provided in prior art. While these condom devices may be suitable for the particular purpose to which they address, they differ from the present invention as discussed below.
In connection with a male condom device of the type using a penis receptacle worn on the penis, it is common to use a sheath of flexible material placed over the penis.
The following prior art patents have been found to be relevant to the field of the present invention:
1. U.S. Pat. No. 3,999,550 issued to Martin on Dec. 28, 1976 for "External Male Catheter" (hereafter the "Martin Patent").
2. U.S. Pat. No. 2,379,346 issued to Farrell on Jun. 26, 1945 for "Urinal Appliance" (hereafter the "Farrell Patent").
3. U.S. Pat. No. 2,222,825 issued to Starck on Nov. 26, 1940 for "Urinal Pouch" (hereafter the "Starck Patent").
4. U.S. Pat. No. 1,982,520 issued to Jakala on Nov. 27, 1934 for "Sanitary Device" (hereafter the "Jakala Patent").
5. U.S. Pat. No. 731,201 issued to Miller et al. on Jun. 16, 1903 for "Supporting Bandage" (hereafter the "Miller Patent").
6. French Patent No. 1,508,356 issued to Rasummy on Nov. 27, 1967 for "Apparatus For Unitary Incontinence In Men" (hereafter the "Rasummy Patent").
7. French Patent No. 992,462 issued to Gamard et al. on Oct. 18, 1951 for "Apparatus For The Treatment Of Unitary Incontinence" (hereafter the "Gamard Patent").
8. German Patent No. 454,773 issued to Kohler on Jan. 17, 1928 for "Apparatus For Treatment of Male Infectious Diseases" (hereafter the "Kohler Patent").
The Miller Patent discloses a supporting bandage for retaining a medicated or absorbent compress on the head of the penis of a man. The supporting bandage comprises a waist belt to be wrapped around the man's waist, and a pair of flexible elastic strings linking the compress to the waist belt. The Miller Patent supporting bandage is not suitable for the purpose of retaining a condom in its fully unrolled condition, because it merely holds the compress on the head of the penis in a relatively motionless situation. If the same supporting bandage is used for a condom, then the flexibility and elasticity of the pair of strings will allow the condom to get loose as a result of the body movements during sexual intercourse.
The Kohler Patent discloses an apparatus for treatment of male infectious diseases. The apparatus comprises a generally oval-shaped rigid container attached to belt support by an attachment assembly. The attachment assembly includes a cap member, a disc member and a ring member which is threaded on the neck of the container. The Kohler Patent attachment is designed for mounting a rigid container, which makes it unfit for retaining a flexible condom.
The Jakala Patent discloses a sanitary device which again comprises an oval-shaped rigid container made of metal material. The rigid container is attached to the penis of a man by a wiring member. The spring tension of the wiring member holds it inside the cavity of the rigid container. It is clear that this arrangement is also not suitable for a condom.
The Stack patent discloses a large sized urinal pouch for covering the entire lower body area of a patient with bladder disability. The urinal pouch is retained under the lower body portion between the two legs of the patient by a number of strap and buckle assemblies.
The Farrell Patent discloses a urinary appliance for people having urinary problems. It comprises a rubber tube attached to the penis of a man by an attachment assembly. The attachment assembly includes a rigid or semi-rigid tubular member having a circular flange. There are two pairs of studs on the circular flange for connection with a pair of short straps and a pair of long straps, which straps are all further attached to a waist belt.
The Gamard Patent discloses an apparatus for treatment of urinary incontinence. The apparatus comprises a container having an enlarged flange attached to a waist belt through straps. The apparatus also includes an electronic treatment device which has two terminals connected into the container.
The Rasummy Patent discloses an apparatus for urinary incontinence n men, where a tubular container is retained to the penis by a band which is wrapped around the end of the tubular container and fastened by VELCRO members. A pair of short straps then connect the fastened band to a waist belt.
The Martin Patent discloses an external male catheter which is retained on the use's penis by a belt assembly. A belt receptacle and a belt retaining ring are used for connecting the catheter and the belt assembly.
It can be seen that none of the prior art apparatus is suitable for the purpose of retaining a condom on a man's penis while it is in use. Some of the prior art patents are designed with a rigid container, such as the Kohler Patent and the Jakala Patent, which is certainly not suitable for the highly elastic and flexible condom. Some the prior art patents are designed with rigid or protruding attachment members, such as the buckles of the Starck Patent, the flange and studs of the Farrell patent and the belt receptacle and belt retaining ring of the Martin Patent, which are also not suitable for retaining a condom because the rigid or extended members will make the user for the condom uncomfortable. Other prior art patents, such as the Miller Patent, the Gamard Patent and the Rasummy Patent, use short flexible straps to connect the containers to the waist belts. As discussed before, the disadvantage of this type of arrangement is that even though the waist belt is tightly fastened to a use's waist, the short connecting straps themselves are dangling but not fastened to the user's body. They will not withstand the movements during sexual intercourse, since their flexibility and elasticity will make them act just like a swing to permit a condom to get loose.
In U.S. Pat. No. 3,863,638, Rogers shows a liner pad between the sheath and the penis to form a cushion and absorb some of the pressure exerted by an externally wound tape. Often, however, the pad is inadvertently not used by an attendant applying the device to a patient or the pad is simply too wide or too narrow for a particular penis. Additionally, Rogers indicates the use of adhesive on both sides of the pad, thus eliminating the need for an external tape.
In U.S. Pat. No. 4,187,851, Hauser also eliminates an external tape by showing the use of an adhesive on both the inner and outer surfaces of a pad. In this way, the pad can be wound around a penis, and the sheath of the urinal device rolled over the pad and held in place by the adhesive. Although the devices of Rogers and Hauser eliminate externally wound tape, they continue to present the problems which result when a material is too tightly wound about a penis.
Broerman, in U.S. Pat. No. 3,739,783, shows a urinal device to be used without wound tape or pads. An adhesive is painted onto a penis and a sheath impregnated with silicone rubber placed over the adhesive. The method and device, however, are not satisfactory since reliability continues to depend on an attendant's use of a proper adhesive.
Hence, there continues to be a need for a safe, leak-free male condom device.